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familiarity

·February 19, 2025·6 min read

Brain Circuit Identifies What’s Familiar, Important, or Just Background

Scientists have identified a previously unknown brain circuit that rapidly evaluates sensory information by integrating memories and emotions. This direct feedback loop between the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus allows the brain to prioritize important sights and sounds almost instantly.

Autism Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·February 28, 2022·6 min read

Familiar Objects Can Prevent Autism-Like Behaviors in Mouse Model

Exposing mice with the autism-associated SHANK3 genetic mutation to new environments can trigger autism-like behaviors, including repetitive movements and problems with social engagement. However, adding familiar objects to the novel environment during the first exposure can reduce the behavioral and brain signaling deficits.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·May 18, 2021·6 min read

A New Theory for What’s Happening in the Brain When Something Looks Familiar

A new theory suggests the brain understands the level of activation required from a sensory input and corrects for it, leaving behind a signal for familiarity.

This is a drawing of a woman surrounded by random objects

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 28, 2021·6 min read

A New Theory for What’s Happening In the Brain When Something Looks Familiar

Researchers propose a new theory of what happens in the brain when we experience familiar seeming visual stimuli. The theory, dubbed sensory referenced suppression, suggests the brain understands different levels of activation expected for sensory input and corrects for it, leaving behind the signal for familiarity.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·November 6, 2019·5 min read

‘I knew that was going to happen:’ Déjà vu and the ‘postdictive’ bias

When intense feelings of prediction accompanied deja vu, they were strongly correlated with feelings of postdiction. High degrees of familiarity that accompany deja vu also carry through to postdictive bias.

Image shows a man holding up a card with a smiley face on it.

Featured Psychology

·June 20, 2017·5 min read

Familiar Faces Look Happier Than Unfamiliar Ones

A new study reveals that people tend to perceive familiar faces as looking happier than those they are not familiar with.

Featured Neuroscience

·September 30, 2015·6 min read

Taking Control of a Rat’s Sense of Familiarity and Novelty

Researchers take control of rats' brains to induce the animals to behave as those new images were familiar and old images were novel, a new study reports.